System and method with vehicle camera

ABSTRACT

A vehicle camera system includes: an around view camera device including a front camera, a left camera, a right camera, and a rear camera, and configured to vary a field of view of one or more of the cameras in response to a control signal; and a control device configured to control the field of view by generating the control signal, in response to an operating mode.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 USC § 119(a) of KoreanPatent Application No. 10-2020-0052438 filed on Apr. 29, 2020 in theKorean Intellectual Property Office, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The following description relates to a system and method with a vehiclecamera.

2. Description of Related Art

An around view system, including cameras installed in a front, rear,left, and right of a vehicle, may assist a driver to conveniently parkthe vehicle.

Such around view system may provide a top view or a bird eye view ofsurrounding obstacles or images by synthesizing four images around thevehicle in 2D or 3D.

The around view system may be interlocked with other sensors installedin the vehicle, such as radar, lidar, and ultrasonic sensors, so thatthe vehicle can automatically park itself without driver input.

The number of cameras and sensors that may be used for variousapplications of an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) and/orautomatic driving system is continuously increasing.

In addition, a field of view (FOV) of a camera lens of a camera used inthe ADAS and/or automatic driving system may be designed andmanufactured differently according to each application of the ADASand/or automatic driving system.

Accordingly, when the FOV of the lens is designed and manufactureddifferently according to the application, a differently-designed cameramay be installed for each application, and as the number of cameras usedfor the various applications increases, the number ofdifferently-designed cameras that are installed increases.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subjectmatter.

In one general aspect, a vehicle camera system includes: an around viewcamera device including a front camera, a left camera, a right camera,and a rear camera, and configured to vary a field of view of one or moreof the cameras in response to a control signal; and a control deviceconfigured to control the field of view by generating the controlsignal, in response to an operating mode.

Each of the front camera, the left camera, the right camera, and therear camera may be a variable moving lens camera.

Each of the front camera, the left camera, the right camera, and therear camera may be a variable liquid lens camera.

For the controlling of the field of view, the control device may beconfigured to control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to an around view mode, in response to the operating modebeing the around view mode.

For the controlling of the field of view, the control device may beconfigured to control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to a driving mode, in response to the operating mode beingthe driving mode.

For the controlling of the field of view, the control device may beconfigured to control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to a black box mode, in response to the operating modebeing the black box mode.

For the controlling of the field of view, the control device may beconfigured to control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to a mirror mode, in response to the operating mode beingthe mirror mode.

The system may include either one or both of a first input device and asecond input device configured to input the operating mode to thecontrol device.

For the controlling of the field of view, the control device may beconfigured to: change the operating mode based on a determined drivingspeed, in response to a change condition of the operating mode beingsatisfied; and control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to the changed operating mode.

In another general aspect, a processor-implemented vehicle camera methodincludes: receiving an operating mode signal; determining whether thereis a change in an operating mode based on the operating mode signal;maintaining the operating mode in response to the operating mode notbeing changed; and changing the operating mode in response to theoperating mode being changed, and controlling a change in a field ofview of one or more cameras to be a field of view corresponding to thechanged operating mode, wherein the one or more cameras include a frontcamera, a left camera, a right camera, and a rear camera with variablefields of view.

Each of the front camera, the left camera, the right camera, and therear camera may be either one of a variable moving lens camera and avariable liquid lens camera.

In response to the changed operating mode being an around view mode, thecontrolling may include controlling the field of view to be a field ofview corresponding to the around view mode.

In response to the changed operating mode being a driving mode, thecontrolling may include controlling the field of view to be a field ofview corresponding to the driving mode.

In response to the changed operating mode being a black box mode, thecontrolling may include controlling the field of view to be a field ofview corresponding to the black box mode.

In response to the changed operating mode being a mirror mode, thecontrolling may include controlling the field of view to be a field ofview corresponding to the mirror mode.

The determining of whether there is a change in the operating mode maybe based on a received driving speed, and the changing of the operatingmode and the controlling of the change in the field of view to be thefield of view corresponding to the changed operating mode may be inresponse to a change condition of the operating mode being satisfied.

In another general aspect, a vehicle includes: an input deviceconfigured to receive an input from a user of the vehicle; one or morecameras disposed on a periphery of the vehicle; a control deviceconfigured determine an operating mode of the one or more cameras basedon the input received from the user, and control a field view of the oneor more cameras based on the determined operating mode; and a displayconfigured to output information corresponding to the determinedoperating mode.

The control device may be configured to: for the determining of theoperating mode, determine the operating mode to be an around view mode;and for the controlling of the field view, control the field of view tobe 180 degrees or more, in response to the operating mode being thearound view mode.

The one or more cameras may be configured to capture one or more imageswith the 180 degrees or more field of view, the control device may beconfigured to generate a bird eye view image based on the one or moreimages, and the display may be configured to output the bird eye viewimage.

The control device may be configured to: for the determining of theoperating mode, determine the operating mode to be a mirror mode; andfor the controlling of the field view, control the field of view to beless than 180 degrees, in response to the operating mode being themirror mode.

The one or more cameras may be configured to capture one or more imageswith the less than 180 degrees field of view, and the control device maybe configured to generate a vehicle mirror image based on the one ormore images, and the display may be configured to output the vehiclemirror image.

Other features and aspects will be apparent from the following detaileddescription, the drawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view of a vehicle camera system according to one or moreembodiments.

FIG. 2 is a view of an installation of an around view camera accordingto one or more embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a view of a vehicle camera system according to one or moreembodiments.

FIG. 4 is a view of a variable lens module according to one or moreembodiments.

FIG. 5 is a view of a variable lens module according to one or moreembodiments.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operating method of a vehiclecamera system according to one or more embodiments.

Throughout the drawings and the detailed description, unless otherwisedescribed or provided, the same drawing reference numerals will beunderstood to refer to the same elements, features, and structures. Thedrawings may not be to scale, and the relative size, proportions, anddepiction of elements in the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity,illustration, and convenience.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is provided to assist the reader ingaining a comprehensive understanding of the methods, apparatuses,and/or systems described herein. However, various changes,modifications, and equivalents of the methods, apparatuses, and/orsystems described herein will be apparent after gaining an understandingof the disclosure of this application. For example, the sequences ofoperations described herein are merely examples, and are not limited tothose set forth herein, but may be changed as will be apparent aftergaining an understanding of the disclosure of this application, with theexception of operations necessarily occurring in a certain order. Also,descriptions of features that are known in the art may be omitted forincreased clarity and conciseness.

The features described herein may be embodied in different forms, andare not to be construed as being limited to the examples describedherein. Rather, the examples described herein have been provided merelyto illustrate some of the many possible ways of implementing themethods, apparatuses, and/or systems described herein that will beapparent after an understanding of the disclosure of this application.

Throughout the specification, when an element, such as a layer, region,or substrate, is described as being “on,” “connected to,” or “coupledto” another element, it may be directly “on,” “connected to,” or“coupled to” the other element, or there may be one or more otherelements intervening therebetween. In contrast, when an element isdescribed as being “directly on,” “directly connected to,” or “directlycoupled to” another element, there can be no other elements interveningtherebetween.

As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any one and any combinationof any two or more of the associated listed items.

Although terms such as “first,” “second,” and “third” may be used hereinto describe various members, components, regions, layers, or sections,these members, components, regions, layers, or sections are not to belimited by these terms. Rather, these terms are only used to distinguishone member, component, region, layer, or section from another member,component, region, layer, or section. Thus, a first member, component,region, layer, or section referred to in examples described herein mayalso be referred to as a second member, component, region, layer, orsection without departing from the teachings of the examples.

Spatially relative terms such as “above,” “upper,” “below,” and “lower”may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element'srelationship to another element as illustrated in the figures. Suchspatially relative terms are intended to encompass differentorientations of the device in use or operation in addition to theorientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in thefigures is turned over, an element described as being “above” or “upper”relative to another element will then be “below” or “lower” relative tothe other element. Thus, the term “above” encompasses both the above andbelow orientations depending on the spatial orientation of the device.The device may also be oriented in other ways (for example, rotated 90degrees or at other orientations), and the spatially relative terms usedherein are to be interpreted accordingly.

Due to manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances, variations of theshapes illustrated in the drawings may occur. Thus, the examplesdescribed herein are not limited to the specific shapes illustrated inthe drawings, but include changes in shape that occur duringmanufacturing

The terminology used herein is for describing various examples only, andis not to be used to limit the disclosure. The articles “a,” “an,” and“the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless thecontext clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “includes,”and “has” specify the presence of stated features, numbers, operations,members, elements, and/or combinations thereof, but do not preclude thepresence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, operations,members, elements, and/or combinations thereof.

The use of the term “may” herein with respect to an example orembodiment (for example, as to what an example or embodiment may includeor implement) means that at least one example or embodiment exists wheresuch a feature is included or implemented, while all examples are notlimited thereto.

FIG. 1 is a view of a vehicle camera system according to one or moreembodiments.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a vehicle camera system according to an embodimentof the present disclosure may include an around view camera device 100and a control device 200.

The around view camera device 100 may include a front camera 110, a leftcamera 120, a right camera 130, and a rear camera 140 of which a fieldof view (FOV) is varied in response to control signals SCs (SC1 to SC4).

The control device 200 may control or change the field of view of thelens of a camera among the front camera 110, the left camera 120, theright camera 130, and the rear camera 130, in response to an inputoperating mode (OM). The control device 200 may include, or berepresentative of, one or more processors.

As an example, when the around view camera device 100 operates in anaround view mode, each camera of the around view camera device 100 mayadvantageously employ a wide-angle camera having a field of view (FOV)of the lens of 180 degrees or more, in order to employ and implement aminimum number of cameras to obtain a 360-degree image around thevehicle. In this case, the control device 200 may create a single imageby cutting or cropping each constant area image input from the aroundview camera device 100 and combining the cut or cropped images, togenerate an around view image. The around view image may be a top viewor a bird eye view of obstacles or images surrounding the vehicle.

Meanwhile, when each camera of the around view camera device 100operates in an around view mode (e.g., a wide-angle mode) having a fieldof view (FOV) of 180 degrees or more, a distortion phenomenon of thelens of each camera may be so severe that an object in a central portionmay appear relatively small, and an object in an outer portion may havelow perception due to distortion. Thus, when operated in a differentoperating mode (usage) than the around view, the field of view of thelens must be changed appropriately for the operating mode. For example,the control device 200 may control or change a field of view of one ormore of the cameras 110, 120, 130 and 140 to be less than 180 degreeswhen the one or more of the cameras 110, 120, 130 and 140 operate in thedifferent operating mode than the around view mode.

For each drawing of the present disclosure, unnecessary duplicatedescriptions may be omitted for the same reference numerals andcomponents having the same function, and details of possible differencesfor each drawing may be described.

FIG. 2 is a view of installing an around view camera according to one ormore embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the front camera 110, the left camera 120, theright camera 130, and the rear camera 140 included in the around viewcamera device 100 may be respectively installed on a front side, a leftside, a right side, and a rear side of a vehicle.

For example, the front camera 110 may be installed on the front side tocapture an area in front of the vehicle, the left camera 120 may beinstalled on the left side to capture an area to the left and to a leftrear side of the vehicle, the right camera 130 may be installed on theright side to capture an area to the right side and to a right rear sideof the vehicle, and the rear camera 140 may be installed on the rearside to capture an area rear of the vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a view of a vehicle camera system (e.g., the vehicle camerasystem of FIG. 1 ) according to one or more embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3 , the vehicle camera system may furtherinclude a display 300, a first input device 400, and a second inputdevice 500.

The display 300 may screen-output any one or any combination of any twoor more of vehicle state information, driving information, sensinginformation, images generated by the around view camera device 100, andinformation corresponding to the operating mode.

The first input device 400 may receive touch input information from auser through the display 300. The second input device 500 may receivebutton input information from the user.

At least one of the first input device 400 and the second input device500 may input the operating mode OM to the control device 200.

For example, the around view mode and/or a different operating mode maybe selected by a user through the first input device 400 and/or thesecond input device 500.

For example, the operating mode OM may be one of an around view mode, adriving mode, a black box mode, and a mirror mode, but is not limitedthereto.

In one example, when the operating mode OM is an around view mode, thecontrol device 200 may control the camera device with a field of view(FOV) corresponding to the around view mode.

When the operating mode OM is a driving mode, the control device 200 maycontrol the camera device with a field of view (FOV) corresponding tothe driving mode. When the operating mode OM is a black box mode, thecontrol device 200 may control the camera device with a field of view(FOV) corresponding to the black box mode.

When the front camera 110, the left camera 120, the right camera 130,and the rear camera 140 operate in a driving mode for front view or ablack box (DVR) mode, the cameras may be adjusted to have a field ofview determined for the driving mode, such that a distance, an object,and/or a number plate captured by one or more of the cameras may beeasily recognized by a user without the distortion phenomenon of thewide-angle lens.

When the operating mode OM is a mirror mode, the control device 200 maycontrol a corresponding camera device with a field of view (FOV)corresponding to the mirror mode.

For example, when the left camera 120 and the right camera 130 includedin the around view camera device 100 are in a mirror mode, the camerasmay be adjusted to have a field of view determined for the mirror mode,such that a cropped and enlarged region of an image captured by the leftcamera 120 or the right camera 130 utilized for the mirror mode (e.g.,as a left and/or right external E-mirror) has a sufficiently highresolution and a sufficiently wide viewing angle. In an example, thefield of view determined for the mirror mode may be less than an 180degree or more field of view determined for the around view mode.

The front camera 110 of the around view camera device 100 may include avariable lens module 111, an image sensor 112, an image signal processor113, a serial converter 114, a power block 115, and a connector 116.

The variable lens module 111 may include a plurality of lenses therein,and a field of view of a portion of the plurality of lenses may bechanged in response to a first control signal SC1, and an image may becaptured with the changed field of view.

The image sensor 112 may generate an image signal by sensing an imagethrough the variable lens module 111.

The image signal processor 113 may perform processing such as imagecorrection, stabilization, and the like, on the image signal receivedfrom the image sensor 112.

The serial converter 114 may convert a parallel-type image signalreceived from the image signal processor 113 into a serial-type imagesignal.

The power block 115 may supply power to each of the variable lens module111, image sensor 112, image signal processor 113, serial converter 114,and connector 116.

The connector 116 may be connected to the control device 200, transmit asignal output from the serial converter 114 to the control device 200,and may transmit the first control signal SC1 from the control device200 to the variable lens module 111.

The left camera 120 of the around view camera device 100 may include avariable lens module 121, an image sensor 122, an image signal processor123, a serial converter 124, a power block 125, and a connector 126.

The variable lens module 121 may include a plurality of lenses therein,and a field of view of a portion of the plurality of lenses may bechanged in response to a second control signal SC2, and an image may becaptured with the changed field of view.

The image sensor 122 may generate an image signal by sensing an imagethrough the variable lens module 121.

The image signal processor 123 may perform processing such as imagecorrection, stabilization, and the like, on the image signal receivedfrom the image sensor 122.

The serial converter 124 may convert a parallel-type image signalreceived from the image signal processor 123 into a serial-type videosignal.

The power block 125 may supply power to each of the variable lens module121, image sensor 122, image signal processor 123, serial converter 124,and connector 126.

The connector 126 may be connected to the control device 200, transmit asignal output from the serial converter 124 to the control device 200,and may transmit the second control signal SC2 from the control device200 to the variable lens module 121.

The right camera 130 of the around view camera device 100 includes avariable lens module 131, an image sensor 132, an image signal processor133, a serial converter 134, a power block 135, and a connector 136.

The variable lens module 131 may include a plurality of lenses therein,and a field of view of a portion of the plurality of lenses may bechanged in response to a third control signal SC3, and an image may becaptured with the changed field of view.

The image sensor 132 may generate an image signal by sensing an imagethrough the variable lens module 131.

The image signal processor 133 may perform processing such as imagecorrection, stabilization, and the like, on the image signal receivedfrom the image sensor 132.

The serial converter 134 may convert a parallel-type image signalreceived from the image signal processor 133 into a serial-type videosignal.

The power block 135 may supply power to the each of the variable lensmodule 131, image sensor 132, image signal processor 133, serialconverter 134, and connector 136.

The connector 136 may be connected to the control device 200, transmit asignal output from the serial converter 134 to the control device 200,and may transmit the third control signal SC3 from the control device200 to the variable lens module 131.

The rear camera 140 of the around view camera device 100 may include avariable lens module 141, an image sensor 142, an image signal processor143, a serial converter 144, a power block 145, and a connector 146.

The variable lens module 141 may include a plurality of lenses therein,and a field of view of a portion of the plurality of lenses may bechanged in response to a fourth control signal SC4, and an image may becaptured with the changed angle of view.

The image sensor 142 may generate an image signal by sensing an imagethrough the variable lens module 141.

The image signal processor 143 may perform processing such as imagecorrection, stabilization, and the like, on the image signal receivedfrom the image sensor 142.

The serial converter 144 may convert a parallel-type image signalreceived from the image signal processor 143 into a serial-type videosignal.

The power block 145 may supply power to each of the variable lens module141, image sensor 142, image signal processor 143, serial converter 144,and connector 146.

The connector 146 may be connected to the control device 200, transmit asignal output from the serial converter 144 to the control device 200,and may transmit the fourth control signal SC4 from the control device200 to the variable lens module 141.

Meanwhile, each of the serial converters 114, 124, 134, and 144 may be acamera data communication portion, but is not limited thereto.

FIG. 4 is a view of a variable lens module according to one or moreembodiments.

Referring to FIG. 4 , each of the front camera 110, the left camera 120,the right camera 130, and the rear camera 140 may be a variable movinglens camera. For example, the variable lens modules 111, 121, 131, and141 of FIG. 3 may include a variable moving lens module as shown in FIG.4 , though examples are not limited thereto.

As an example, as illustrated in FIG. 4 , the variable moving lenscamera may include the variable moving lens module including a firstlens portion LN1, a second lens portion LN2, and a third lens portionLN3.

The first lens portion LN1 and the third lens portion LN3 may be fixedlyinstalled.

The second lens portion LN2 may be moved between a first position P1 anda second position P2 in response to the control signal SC1, andaccordingly, the field of view of the lens module may be adjusted.

The variable moving lens camera illustrated in FIG. 4 is not limited toone example.

FIG. 5 is a view of a variable lens module according to one or moreembodiments.

Referring to FIG. 5 , each of the front camera 110, the left camera 120,the right camera 130, and the rear camera 140 may be a variable liquidlens camera. For example, the variable lens modules 111, 121, 131, and141 of FIG. 3 may include a variable liquid lens module as shown in FIG.5 , though examples are not limited thereto.

As an example, the variable liquid lens camera may include the variableliquid lens module, and as illustrated in FIG. 5 . The variable liquidlens module may include an insulator IN disposed between a window WIN onfront and rear surfaces, and metals M1 and M2 on side surfaces An innerspace formed by the insulator IN, window WIN, and metals M1 and M2 mayinclude fluids water WT and oil OL separated from each other.

In this case, the shape of the liquid lens may be changed according tothe control signal SC1 applied to the metals M1 and M2, so that thefield of view of the lens may be adjusted.

The variable moving lens camera illustrated in FIG. 5 is not limited toone example.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5 , for example, each of the front camera 110,the left camera 120, the right camera 130, and the rear camera 140 maybe a multi-field of view camera.

Here, as illustrated in FIG. 4 , the multi-field of view camera may be avariable moving lens camera having a multi-field of view (FOV) lens thatcan vary the field of view (FOV) with an actuator.

In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 5 , it may be a variable liquidcamera having a liquid lens module.

As such, the multi-field of view camera may be a camera having variousmulti-field of view (FOV) lenses.

Meanwhile, in an example, when a change in the operating mode OM basedon a received driving speed is determined, and a change condition of theoperating mode OM is satisfied, the control device 200 may change theoperating mode OM, and may control the camera device with a field ofview FOV corresponding to the changed operating mode OM. For example,the control device 200 may change the operating mode OM based on adetermined driving speed, when a change condition of the operating modeOM is satisfied, and control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to the changed operating mode OM.

In addition, in an example, the variable lens camera that can change thefield of view is not limited to the variable moving lens or variableliquid lens exemplified in the present disclosure.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 6 , an operating method of a vehiclecamera system will be described. The aforementioned description of thevehicle camera system with reference to FIGS. 1-5 and the operatingmethod of the vehicle camera system described below with reference toFIG. 6 may be applied to each other, unless otherwise specified, thoughexamples are not limited thereto. That is, the description made withreference to FIGS. 1 to 5 may be applied, and accordingly, in thedescription of the operating method of the vehicle camera system,detailed overlapping descriptions may be omitted. That is, in additionto the description of FIG. 6 below, the descriptions of FIGS. 1-5 arealso applicable to FIG. 6 , and are incorporated herein by reference.Thus, the above description may not be repeated here.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operating method of a vehiclecamera system according to one or more embodiments.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 6 , an operating method of a vehicle camerasystem may be performed. The steps in FIG. 6 may be performed in thesequence and manner as shown, although the order of some steps may bechanged or some of the steps omitted without departing from the spiritand scope of the illustrative examples described. Certain steps shown inFIG. 6 may be performed in parallel or concurrently.

In a step S100, the control device 200 may receive an operating mode(OM) signal.

In a step S200, the control device 200 may determine a change in theoperating mode based on the operating mode (OM) signal (e.g., based onthe operating mode (OM) signal received in step S100).

In a step S300, the control device 200 may maintain the operating modewhen the operating mode is not changed (e.g., when it is determined instep S200 that the operating mode is not changed).

In a step S400, the control device 200 may change the operating mode forthe camera device when the operating mode is changed (e.g., when it isdetermined in step S200 that the operating mode is changed), and controla change in the field of view (FOV) corresponding to the operating mode.

For example, as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 , each of the front camera110, the left camera 120, the right camera 130, and the rear camera 140may be a variable moving lens camera or a variable liquid lens camera.

For example, when the operating mode OM is an around view mode, thecontrol device 200 may control the corresponding camera device with afield of view (FOV) corresponding to the around view mode.

For example, when the operating mode OM is a driving mode, the controldevice 200 may control the corresponding camera device with a field ofview (FOV) corresponding to the driving mode.

For example, when the operating mode OM is a black box mode, the controldevice 200 may control the corresponding camera device with a field ofview (FOV) corresponding to the black box mode.

For example, when the operating mode OM is a mirror mode, the controldevice 200 may control the corresponding camera device with a field ofview (FOV) corresponding to the around view mode.

On the other hand, when the change in the operating mode OM isdetermined based on the received driving speed, and a change conditionof the operating mode OM is satisfied, the control device may change theoperating mode OM, and may control the camera device with the field ofview (FOV) corresponding to the changed operating mode OM.

The around view camera devices, control devices, displays, first inputdevices, second input devices, front cameras, left cameras, rightcameras, rear cameras, variable lens modules, image sensors, imagesignal processors, serial converters, power blocks, connectors, aroundview camera device 100, control device 200, display 300, first inputdevice 400, second input device 500, front camera 110, left camera 120,right camera 130, rear camera 140, variable lens module 111, imagesensor 112, image signal processor 113, serial converter 114, powerblock 115, connector 116, variable lens module 121, image sensor 122,image signal processor 123, serial converter 124, power block 125,connector 126, variable lens module 131, image sensor 132, image signalprocessor 133, serial converter 134, power block 135, connector 136,variable lens module 141, image sensor 142, image signal processor 143,serial converter 144, power block 145, connector 146, apparatuses,units, modules, devices, and other components described herein withrespect to FIGS. 1-6 are implemented by or representative of hardwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components that may be used to performthe operations described in this application where appropriate includecontrollers, sensors, generators, drivers, memories, comparators,arithmetic logic units, adders, subtractors, multipliers, dividers,integrators, and any other electronic components configured to performthe operations described in this application. In other examples, one ormore of the hardware components that perform the operations described inthis application are implemented by computing hardware, for example, byone or more processors or computers. A processor or computer may beimplemented by one or more processing elements, such as an array oflogic gates, a controller and an arithmetic logic unit, a digital signalprocessor, a microcomputer, a programmable logic controller, afield-programmable gate array, a programmable logic array, amicroprocessor, or any other device or combination of devices that isconfigured to respond to and execute instructions in a defined manner toachieve a desired result. In one example, a processor or computerincludes, or is connected to, one or more memories storing instructionsor software that are executed by the processor or computer. Hardwarecomponents implemented by a processor or computer may executeinstructions or software, such as an operating system (OS) and one ormore software applications that run on the OS, to perform the operationsdescribed in this application. The hardware components may also access,manipulate, process, create, and store data in response to execution ofthe instructions or software. For simplicity, the singular term“processor” or “computer” may be used in the description of the examplesdescribed in this application, but in other examples multiple processorsor computers may be used, or a processor or computer may includemultiple processing elements, or multiple types of processing elements,or both. For example, a single hardware component or two or morehardware components may be implemented by a single processor, or two ormore processors, or a processor and a controller. One or more hardwarecomponents may be implemented by one or more processors, or a processorand a controller, and one or more other hardware components may beimplemented by one or more other processors, or another processor andanother controller. One or more processors, or a processor and acontroller, may implement a single hardware component, or two or morehardware components. A hardware component may have any one or more ofdifferent processing configurations, examples of which include a singleprocessor, independent processors, parallel processors,single-instruction single-data (SISD) multiprocessing,single-instruction multiple-data (SIMD) multiprocessing,multiple-instruction single-data (MISD) multiprocessing, andmultiple-instruction multiple-data (MIMD) multiprocessing.

The methods illustrated in FIGS. 1-6 that perform the operationsdescribed in this application are performed by computing hardware, forexample, by one or more processors or computers, implemented asdescribed above executing instructions or software to perform theoperations described in this application that are performed by themethods. For example, a single operation or two or more operations maybe performed by a single processor, or two or more processors, or aprocessor and a controller. One or more operations may be performed byone or more processors, or a processor and a controller, and one or moreother operations may be performed by one or more other processors, oranother processor and another controller. One or more processors, or aprocessor and a controller, may perform a single operation, or two ormore operations.

Instructions or software to control computing hardware, for example, oneor more processors or computers, to implement the hardware componentsand perform the methods as described above may be written as computerprograms, code segments, instructions or any combination thereof, forindividually or collectively instructing or configuring the one or moreprocessors or computers to operate as a machine or special-purposecomputer to perform the operations that are performed by the hardwarecomponents and the methods as described above. In one example, theinstructions or software include machine code that is directly executedby the one or more processors or computers, such as machine codeproduced by a compiler. In another example, the instructions or softwareincludes higher-level code that is executed by the one or moreprocessors or computer using an interpreter. The instructions orsoftware may be written using any programming language based on theblock diagrams and the flow charts illustrated in the drawings and thecorresponding descriptions used herein, which disclose algorithms forperforming the operations that are performed by the hardware componentsand the methods as described above.

The instructions or software to control computing hardware, for example,one or more processors or computers, to implement the hardwarecomponents and perform the methods as described above, and anyassociated data, data files, and data structures, may be recorded,stored, or fixed in or on one or more non-transitory computer-readablestorage media. Examples of a non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium include read-only memory (ROM), random-access programmable readonly memory (PROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory(EEPROM), random-access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory(DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), flash memory, non-volatilememory, CD-ROMs, CD-Rs, CD+Rs, CD-RWs, CD+RWs, DVD-ROMs, DVD-Rs, DVD+Rs,DVD-RWs, DVD+RWs, DVD-RAMs, BD-ROMs, BD-Rs, BD-R LTHs, BD-REs, blue-rayor optical disk storage, hard disk drive (HDD), solid state drive (SSD),flash memory, a card type memory such as multimedia card micro or a card(for example, secure digital (SD) or extreme digital (XD)), magnetictapes, floppy disks, magneto-optical data storage devices, optical datastorage devices, hard disks, solid-state disks, and any other devicethat is configured to store the instructions or software and anyassociated data, data files, and data structures in a non-transitorymanner and provide the instructions or software and any associated data,data files, and data structures to one or more processors or computersso that the one or more processors or computers can execute theinstructions. In one example, the instructions or software and anyassociated data, data files, and data structures are distributed overnetwork-coupled computer systems so that the instructions and softwareand any associated data, data files, and data structures are stored,accessed, and executed in a distributed fashion by the one or moreprocessors or computers.

While this disclosure includes specific examples, it will be apparentafter an understanding of the disclosure of this application thatvarious changes in form and details may be made in these exampleswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the claims and theirequivalents. The examples described herein are to be considered in adescriptive sense only, and not for purposes of limitation. Descriptionsof features or aspects in each example are to be considered as beingapplicable to similar features or aspects in other examples. Suitableresults may be achieved if the described techniques are performed in adifferent order, and/or if components in a described system,architecture, device, or circuit are combined in a different manner,and/or replaced or supplemented by other components or theirequivalents. Therefore, the scope of the disclosure is defined not bythe detailed description, but by the claims and their equivalents, andall variations within the scope of the claims and their equivalents areto be construed as being included in the disclosure.

What is claimed:
 1. A vehicle camera system, comprising: a camera deviceincluding a front camera, a left camera, a right camera, and a rearcamera, and configured to vary a field of view of one or more of thefront camera, the left camera, the right camera, and the rear camera inresponse to a control signal; and a control device configured to controlthe field of view by generating the control signal based on a determineddriving speed of a vehicle, in response to an operating mode, whereinthe one or more of the front camera, the left camera, the right camera,and the rear camera is a variable moving lens camera including a movablelens portion configured to move in response to the control signal tovary the field of view, wherein, for the controlling of the field ofview, the control device is further configured to: change the operatingmode based on the determined driving speed, in response to a changecondition of the operating mode being satisfied; and control the fieldof view to be a field of view corresponding to the changed operatingmode.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein, for the controlling of thefield of view, the control device is configured to control the field ofview to be a field of view corresponding to an around view mode, inresponse to the operating mode being the around view mode.
 3. The systemof claim 1, wherein, for the controlling of the field of view, thecontrol device is configured to control the field of view to be a fieldof view corresponding to a driving mode, in response to the operatingmode being the driving mode.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein, for thecontrolling of the field of view, the control device is configured tocontrol the field of view to be a field of view corresponding to a blackbox mode, in response to the operating mode being the black box mode. 5.The system of claim 1, wherein, for the controlling of the field ofview, the control device is configured to control the field of view tobe a field of view corresponding to a mirror mode, in response to theoperating mode being the mirror mode.
 6. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising either one or both of a first input device and a second inputdevice configured to input the operating mode to the control device. 7.A processor-implemented vehicle camera method, comprising: receiving anoperating mode signal; determining whether there is a change in anoperating mode based on the operating mode signal; maintaining theoperating mode in response to the operating mode not being changed; andchanging the operating mode in response to the operating mode beingchanged, and controlling a change in a field of view of one or morecameras among a front camera, a left camera, a right camera, and a rearcamera to be a field of view corresponding to the changed operating modebased on a received driving speed of a vehicle, wherein each of the oneor more cameras is a variable moving lens camera including a movablelens portion configured to move in response to the operating mode beingchanged to change the field of view, and wherein, for the controlling ofthe field of view, the control device is further configured to: changethe operating mode based on the determined driving speed, in response toa change condition of the operating mode being satisfied; and controlthe field of view to be a field of view corresponding to the changedoperating mode.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein, in response to thechanged operating mode being an around view mode, the controllingcomprises controlling the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to the around view mode.
 9. The method of claim 7,wherein, in response to the changed operating mode being a driving mode,the controlling comprises controlling the field of view to be a field ofview corresponding to the driving mode.
 10. The method of claim 7,wherein, in response to the changed operating mode being a black boxmode, the controlling comprises controlling the field of view to be afield of view corresponding to the black box mode.
 11. The method ofclaim 7, wherein, in response to the changed operating mode being amirror mode, the controlling comprises controlling the field of view tobe a field of view corresponding to the mirror mode.
 12. The method ofclaim 7, wherein the determining of whether there is a change in theoperating mode is based on the received driving speed, and the changingof the operating mode and the controlling of the change in the field ofview to be the field of view corresponding to the changed operating modeis in response to a change condition of the operating mode beingsatisfied.
 13. A vehicle, comprising: an input device configured toreceive an input from a user of the vehicle; one or more camerasdisposed on a periphery of the vehicle; a control device configured todetermine an operating mode of the one or more cameras based on theinput received from the user, and control a field view of the one ormore cameras based on the determined operating mode dependent on adriving speed of the vehicle; and a display configured to outputinformation corresponding to the determined operating mode, wherein eachof the one or more cameras is a variable moving lens camera including amovable lens portion configured to move to change the field of view,based on the control of the field of view, and wherein, for thecontrolling of the field of view, the control device is furtherconfigured to: change the operating mode based on the determined drivingspeed, in response to a change condition of the operating mode beingsatisfied; and control the field of view to be a field of viewcorresponding to the changed operating mode.
 14. The vehicle of claim13, wherein the control device is configured to: for the determining ofthe operating mode, determine the operating mode to be an around viewmode; and for the controlling of the field view, control the field ofview to be 180 degrees or more, in response to the operating mode beingthe around view mode.
 15. The vehicle of claim 14, wherein the one ormore cameras are configured to capture one or more images with the 180degrees or more field of view, the control device is configured togenerate a bird eye view image based on the one or more images, and thedisplay is configured to output the bird eye view image.
 16. The vehicleof claim 13, wherein the control device is configured to: for thedetermining of the operating mode, determine the operating mode to be amirror mode; and for the controlling of the field view, control thefield of view to be less than 180 degrees, in response to the operatingmode being the mirror mode.
 17. The vehicle of claim 16, wherein the oneor more cameras are configured to capture one or more images with theless than 180 degrees field of view, the control device is configured togenerate a vehicle mirror image based on the one or more images, and thedisplay is configured to output the vehicle mirror image.